Mother of Pearl

Roksanda

Roksanda Ilincic has come a long way since her London Fashion Week debut in 2003. The Serbian-born, London-based designer had a busy summer, opening her first store in London, taking on a new financial backer and rebranding her eponymous label as simply "Roksanda." Her clothes in recent seasons have become more confident and architectural -- similar (and in some respects more evolved) than New York darling Rosie Assoulin's collections.

For spring, Ilincic showed color-blocked midi dresses in an appealing assortment of black, pink, fluorescent red, aqua and periwinkle blue, with fitted bodices and large serpentine folds that wound diagonally across the front or down from the shoulder. Other, more slender dresses were worn under oversized vests and coats decorated with stripes and still more color-blocking. Like many other designers showing in London over the past four days (including Mother of Pearl and Peter Pilotto on the same day), Ilincic embellished many of her pieces with perspex, which assumed circular shapes on her clothes. Ilincic says she is focusing more on these kinds of pieces now that she has her own store, which "has to offer something a bit different." Nicholas Kirkwood designed the shoes -- origami-style heels and ankle-strap flatforms that mimicked (and complemented) the color-blocked patterns of the clothes. -- Lauren Indvik

Erdem

Just when we thought we couldn't handle another colorful, patterned, activewear-inspired, perspex-embellished collection, out comes Erdem with a richly varied and lovingly detailed set of clothes that offered, as one editor put it, "beauty for beauty's sake." The designs, which drew chiefly from the jungle for inspiration, were unveiled in a dark, cavernous space against a backdrop of foliage. The show opened with a semi-transparent dress with a deep V-neck and flounced skirt, embroidered with green and yellow foliage. Later came delicately woven dresses in white, and a gray tweed vest that folded origami-style over a calf-length floral skirt. The most attention-grabbing pieces were the feathered ones: a top and pencil skirt printed with vivid florals and decorated with curving lines of turquoise features, and a boxy mid-calf coat made entirely of dark green feathers, used again on the front of a fitted dress with a cut-out waist. In Erdem's world, the jungle is dark and lovely indeed. -- Lauren Indvik

Michael Van Der Ham

Michael van der Ham showed his spring 2015 collection right before Burberry, which is the Marc Jacobs of London in that it famously starts right on time, and it’s not a show you want to risk missing. So, a lot of people probably skipped Van der Ham’s show, which is a shame because it looked really, really good.

Known for his skill at mixing prints and textures, van der Ham did just that for spring 2015, incorporating metallic appliqués in abstract shapes, some of which almost look like cats (or maybe I just really miss my own cat?). Despite the abundant mixing of textures, much of the collection still felt wearable — even his fanciful evening gowns have stars like Keira Knightley calling. -- Dhani Mau

Burberry Prorsum

Guests at Burberry's spring 2015 show were in for a bit of surprise Monday afternoon. The British label covered the runway and ceilings of the large glass-domed show space it has long used to stage its shows in Hyde Park with a rainbow of florals, insects and text, which echoed the vivid palette and prints of the collection. See all the looks and read our full review here. -- Lauren Indvik

Issa

For spring 2015, creative director Blue Farrier gave Issa the pop art treatment. Her signature draped and wrapped construction was amplified by graphic motifs including a running horse print and an undulating wavy line (meant to be a more abstract interpretation of the horses according to the show notes). Also, there were cats! Aww. -- Dhani Mau

Christopher Kane

Shortly after the death of Central Saint Martins professor and MA course director Louise Wilson this spring, Christopher Kane came across photographs of the work he created in the 18 months under her tutelage: Clothes with coils, cords and ropes, which formed the basis for his spring 2015 collection, dedicated to Wilson's memory. Designs ranged from slinky, semi-transparent dresses covered in rope motifs or sheer paneling, a satin jacket suit with a tulle peplum and girly dresses with what Kane described as "exploding" tulle skirts in a strict palette of bordeaux, periwinkle blue, black and ivory. These were paired with Kane's second collection of handbags, in boxy black leather decorated with the plastic seatbelts he has elected as his signature. While the visual appeal of the looks ranged, we couldn't help but admire the way Kane expanded and inverted the ropes and coils motif throughout the collection, exacting in its execution. -- Lauren Indvik

Peter Pilotto

Rave colors, mixed prints and embellishment dominated London Fashion Week -- and no one pulled them all together better than Peter Pilotto and his co-creative director, Christopher De Vos. Their spring collection featured a number of laminated, multi-patterned and cut-out mini dresses, many worn with flat sandals designed by Nicholas Kirkwood, which gave them an easier vibe. Our favorite piece in the collection was a reflective knee-length coat in cobalt, violet and gold, sectioned to look like stained glass. -- Lauren Indvik

Giles

Giles is always one of my favorite shows of London Fashion Week. As extravagant as his designs tend to be, they also have a sense of fun, youthful subversiveness. Plus, he gets really good models. It seems Gigi Hadid is Katie Grand’s new muse: The Love EIC, stylist and sometimes casting director cast her in Marc Jacobs's show in New York and, lo, there she was in a beaded silver tank dress at Giles, following a similar fashion month trajectory to Kendall Jenner’s last season. Also, Edie Campbell (who's blonde again) opened and Kirsten Owen closed.

But back to the clothes: Deacon often plays with animal motifs, and this collection had a jungle theme. He opened with safari striped daywear, followed by solid pieces with embellishment — either a big snake appliqué cleverly winding down a dress, or a large paw print, seen on the shoulder of a white gown, the front of an oversized sweater, and the back of a top. There were also some more delicate brocade pieces on which the paw prints were more subtle and later they were printed onto cool metallic, sparkling dresses. Then came a series of more fluid, silk, pajama-like looks with birds of prey seemingly hand-painted on. Impressive laser cut leather dresses and snakeskin print gowns followed, but we were equally impressed with his more casual (and sellable) pieces. -- Dhani Mau

Mulberry

Mulberry’s spring 2015 ready to wear collection was all about flowers -- a safe theme to latch onto in spring, particularly for a brand with no creative director at the moment. There were pretty tea dresses, cute mini skirts paired with blouses, utilitarian light parkas and a pretty large assortment of leather pieces. The brand also launched a new handbag, The Delphie, which has a clever reversible flap so the bag can go from one texture to another with the snap of a button. If the prices are reasonable, we could see it being a decent seller. -- Dhani Mau

Tom Ford

Rock 'n roll style is a natural subject of inspiration for a designer who has built a $1 billion-a-year business selling $50 tubes of lipstick and $100+ bottles of fragrance to those hoping to obtain his elusive brand of sexy. A series of cool chicks with mussed hair and smudged eyeliner opened Tom Ford's spring 2015 show, wearing black mini dresses and skirts with fitted black jackets, thigh-high stockings and exaggerated platform heels. Fitted sequined tops with high-waisted leather pants, tight on the thigh and flared below the knee, followed. It was all -- it must be said -- very Hedi Slimane for Saint Laurent. See all the looks and read our full review here. -- Lauren Indvik

It may have been a sleepy President's Day here in the good ole U.S. of A., but if you're looking for a little visual wallop, Super Monday in the U.K. offered luxed-up sex at Burberry Prorsum, fifty shades of black at Erdem, a "this is your brain on Christopher Kane" performance for PPR, and the return to the catwalk of Tom Ford.